I'm currious about those of us who's families didn't immigrate to the US until well after slavery was abolished? How does that make us responsible?

The petition is not after individual whites at all. I think that that is something that is viewed in the wrong sense of understanding.

The goverment and those corporations who have reaped the benefits of the wrong done is who is actually culpable.

We understand the immigrant issue and that thier where many, many poor whites who could not even own a chicken less alone a slave. So this is not where we take our address to.

Reparations has nothing to do with individual persons, or should I write an attack on individual persons.

America is everyday shelling out millions of dollars on some so-called cause out of this country or in this country that has nothing to do with the tax paying citizens who reside here who has paid taxes. We as people who live here get very little if anything for the tax dollars that we pay every year in federal income tax.

When a person is found guilty of a crime and then he is incarcerated for that crime and then evidence comes to light that makes that same person innocent of that crime, should we just now set that man free and not feel responsible about what the years that was took from him due to the illegal act of incarceration that he was placed in?

Slavery was legal, but yet found to be illegal. Black people suffered for centuries under the legal banner of it, now that is illegal what happens to the time spent in suffering under the banner of it being so-called legal?

It was deemed legal under the federal goverment, if you were part of the goverment you more than likely owned slaves and if you were smart you made money, so much money that most of the corporations today exist because of that money.

No different than Cheny and Haliburton today.

_________________Leviticus 24:20
fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has injured the other, so he is to be injured.

We most definately disagree on this. The government is currently comprised of no one (to my knowledge)that owned slaves and I highly doubt you were a slave. People just want an easy buck for nothing. (at least that is how it looks to me.) Trouble is all of us would be paying for crimes, through taxes, that we were not responsible for and those receiving the monies were not the ones wronged. You say government, but government gets it money from the people. I am the people and I nor did my relatives own or particpate in slavery. Throughout history in ALL parts of the world people have been wronged and treated injustly. Maybe reparations should then be paid to all woman in the US for the crimes they have suffered and still suffer. I am not saying these things to try and justfy slavery. It was and still is wrong, but people fought and died for your ancestors. Maybe the ancestors of slaves should then pay reparations to those families whose ancestors gave their lives fighting to free the slaves. There are so many more injustices in the world right now that need fixing, how about energy is spent righting those wrongs instead. Take for instance the young girls who are subjected to female circumcision in Africa. What is being done to help them?

The goverment is currently fighting an unjust war in Iraq through tax payer dollars, and you or your people have no say so in that.

I am advocating the same thing that the goverment is saying that they are doing in Iraq. The goverment said they are rebuilding Iraq after what, the goverment destroyed it.

The goverment sanctioned slavery which destroyed a people and need I say that "occupation" was indeed longer than the occupation in Iraq where now all of a sudden they are there to "rebuild" what they destroyed.

We must never forget that prior to your family coming to America, that a segment of the American goverment suggested "repairing" what they had done to black people during the course of slavery by "giving" black people land. Admitting that a wrong had been done and that the offering and giving of land would be the payment for such wrongs. Although they reneged, which at this time I am not clear of why.

However, just the idea that the goverment entertained the offering of land gives credibility that the system of slavery was illegal and that right is needed to correct a wrong in some way.

And should we also never forget that all victims of all atrocities whether they were alive at the time or not, when the time came and their case wnet to court and they won, they received compensation. If they were deceased their living relatives or receivorship benefited.

_________________Leviticus 24:20
fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has injured the other, so he is to be injured.

I wasn't advocating anything. How did the war in Iraq enter into this conversation? Lets say though it is relavent. I and my family now live in the US and the government is now supported finacially by my family so I do carry the weight of what my country does now. That is not to say I am advocating war, just like many Americans were not advocating slavery and gave their lives to end it. What is your thought Derion on the taking of ALL the land from the Native Americans? Shouldn't all the land rightfully belong to them? Should it all be given back to their ancestors? What of the rest of us...do we leave? If so where do we go? I could go back to Europe and you and your family could go back to Africa.

Last edited by Nina on Sun Oct 15, 2006 6:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Black people also fought in that war, but after the war the two people white and black were treated very, very different.

So I cannot understand what you mean.

I do agree with your first statement about the goverment.

perhaps they were treated "differently", but they were not slaves and many who had the ambition went on to become quite successful. as with anyone in america, the opporutnity exists to pull one self up and become whatever they choose. some people take advantage of this, while others prefer not to.

with that, i don't feel any emotions to those, be the black or white or whomever, if they choose not to. additionally, i don't know of any former slaves who are still alive today, and i'll be damned if the government is going to take my tax dollars and hand it out to people who's only knowledge of slavery is from a history book.

now, i've watched the HBO specials on slavery and it's an emotional history of our past...but that's where it ends: in our past. if some, such as yourself, prefer to dwell on this "woe is me" excuse, then that's a shortcoming on your part. i know many black families that live where i do and are quite "well to do", in fact some much better than many whites around here.

I wasn't advocating anything. How did the war in Iraq enter into this conversation? Lets say though it is relavent. I and my family now live in the US and the government is now supported finacially by my family so I do carry the weight of what my country does now. That is not to say I am advocating war, just like many Americans were not advocating slavery and gave their lives to end it. What is your thought Derion on the taking of ALL the land from the Native Americans? Shouldn't all the land rightfully belong to them? Should it all be given back to their ancestors? What of the rest of us...do we leave? If so where do we go? I could go back to Europe and you and your family could go back to Africa.

Well that sounds about right, In fact everyone must eventually return to their own. When that becomes the decree will you have a problem with it?

I used to war in Iraq to correlate the what happened here to black people on the destruction side.

First of all we (me and you) will never see eye to eye on this subject mainly because you and I are different. Even though your family never owned slaves just because they have white skin (if your family has white skin) already certain privelges exist for them that do not exist for black people. Black people have been the MOST discriminated group of minorities in this country annd have been the most abused group as well. So well that the stain of this country is the blot of slavery. It is so damming that the talk about it is shhh. They rather talk about the bomb they dropped on Nagasaki... but I regress, so...

But to speak about going back that is going to cost to...

After a kidnapper has crossed state lines, how in the heck is that person going to tell the victim they better go back home? The kidnapper better provide transportation and food for the trip, as well as lost wages for the time that the victim was away from work. Did I mention retro pay and severance pay from the work done while out-of-state? Also, the last time that I checked the kidnapper was the person who set up government on stolen land. How does your mind form the thought that something is to be given back by the victim when no government was set up by the victim's hand?

_________________Leviticus 24:20
fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has injured the other, so he is to be injured.

This discussion, if it is to continue to take place, should be held in the History section, please. This forum is for posting of petitions and notices about activism. Discussions would be better suited to a discussion area of this board. Thanks for understanding.